Hammock Gear Burrow 0° Top Quilt Wide, 26.4 oz (I went with the wide version for better coverage on tent trips where I may sleep on the ground. If you only plan to use yours in a hammock, you can probably do a standard width model)
Climbing Grade Carabiners Rated 1,000lb+, 1.5 oz for the pair (In the video I’m using Dutchware biners that came with my Chameleon Hammock, but I also use Black Diamond Neutrino carabiners
Total Hammock System Weight: 1.75 lbs (793 grams) Total Insulation System Weight: 3.25 lbs (1.47 kilos) Shelter System Weight (tarp plus all lines & adjustment hardware): 8.75 oz
Deep Winter Hammock Camping System Grand Total Weight: 5.55 lbs (2.52 kilos)
For this Backpacking Trip, we use a Pulk Sled to go Winter Camping in the Deep Snow of the White Mountains.
Mike and I originally planned to do a long overdue return trip to Mt Crawford for some winter backpacking and camping, but as is usually the case, the notorious weather of the White Mountains thwarted our efforts. With a higher summits forecast from the White Mountains Observatory calling for -60° wind chills due subzero temps combined with high winds and gusts upwards of 90 MPH, we opted to stick to the lower elevations instead. So we shelved our higher elevation idea to camp on Mt Crawford, and instead started scouting for a new location on the fly.
Basically, we were winging it in terms of trip planning, but fortunately I was armed with a full set of White Mountains AMC maps to keep up safely prepared on whatever trail we ended up cast upon by the winter hiking gods.
In the video we do some snow campsite selection and setup, tons of firewood collection, snow furniture building, campfire cooking, trail sledding on the rather steep Airline Trail, and overall just plain having a fun time out in the snowy woods of New Hampshire for a few days.
Downloadable GPS data for this trip and others can be found on the Trip Data Page.
Winter Sled Camping Route Overview – Sintax77
Time of Year Mid February
Parking Location Appalachia Trailhead Parking Lot
44°22’17.6″N 71°17’19.9″W
Trailhead
Appalachia Trailhead on Presidential Hwy (Hwy 2), Randolph, NH
Trails Used, Day One
Valley Way Trail
Randolph Path
Airline Trail
Setup Camp near Airline Trail
Located in the middle of the triangle formed for the Airline, Randolph Path, and Valley Way Trails.We used this campsite with significant snow pack on the ground so leveling out a decent platform for a tent was no problem. Based on my experience in this general area on previous summer trips, I would assume it would not make a very accommodating tentsite without snow, due to the steep and rugged terrain.
Day 1 Mileage: 2 miles Day 1 Elevation Gain: 1,122′
Winter Sled Camping Day 1 Elevation Profile – Sintax77
Trails Used, Day Two
Airline Trail
Return to vehicle at Appalachia Trailhead Parking Lot
Day 1 Mileage: 1 mile Day 1 Elevation Gain: 6′ (pretty brutal, I know)
Winter Sled Camping Day 2 Elevation Profile – Sintax77
I’ll also show my favorite backpacking snow shovel, as well as how I create some “dead man” anchors to secure my three season tent in the snow using regular plastic grocery bags, since aluminum spikes would simply slip out of place in the deep snow.
Tent shown is a Kelty Salida 2.
Location is the Big Branch Wilderness Area within Vermont’s Green Mountain National Forest.